Being falsely accused as a thief was one thing, but what hurt more was being abandoned by the man who’d first believed in her.

How disappointed the Duke must have been.

He might cut off his support for her.

That’s why he didn’t come.

Because he was disappointed in her.

“The punishment for Student Brandley will be—”

That’s when it happened.

Bang!

“Sorry I’m late.”

Like a miracle, Astaire appeared.

Daphne’s eyes widened as she looked up at Astaire.

Even blinking again, it was definitely him.

“I’m Student Brandley’s guardian, so what exactly happened to the student I’m sponsoring?”

The room stirred at Astaire’s words.

Everyone knew Daphne had a guardian, but who exactly that guardian was had been kept thoroughly secret.

Everyone probably just assumed it was some wealthy merchant.

No one would have guessed that person was Duke Astaire Seyfried, the noble among nobles.

“W-well, that is…!”

Everyone, even Lady Solitaire who’d accused Daphne, looked flustered and couldn’t speak easily.

“Student Brandley allegedly stole Lady Solitaire’s family ring!”

When someone finally managed to speak, Astaire looked down at Daphne coldly.

Without a word. Just watching with eyes whose emotions couldn’t be easily read.

That look from the man hurt Daphne more than anything. A corner of her heart stung.

“Tell only the truth.”

The man whispered.

She swallowed involuntarily.

Though she’d done nothing wrong and had a clear conscience, a strange feeling wrapped around her ankles—like a crime she hadn’t committed was being exposed.

“Did you really steal it?”

She realized that moment.

Even if she cried and shouted that she was innocent, emotional appeals wouldn’t work on Astaire anyway.

The man wouldn’t believe her tears.

Since she’d committed no wrong, she had no reason to cry.

Since she hadn’t stolen anything, she had no reason to lament her injustice.

She just needed to state the unchanging facts.

That she didn’t do it.

“…No. I didn’t steal it.”

“Really?”

Time that had been flowing like water suddenly seemed to stop.

Daphne felt like only she and Astaire existed in the room. She silently endured his emotionless gaze that seemed to want to turn her inside out.

“Yes.”

Swallowing a short sigh, her answering voice sounded surprisingly calm even to her own ears.

She didn’t know how that voice sounded to Astaire.

Suppressing the urge to squeeze her eyes shut, Daphne met the Duke’s gaze firmly.

It felt like an eternity.

Finally, the man’s lips opened.

“She says she didn’t do it.”

“W-well, that’s…!”

Everyone was visibly flustered at the Duke’s flat statement.

Considering Duke Astaire’s position, it would have been more advantageous not to cause friction with Count Solitaire rather than protect a guardian with no background.

Yet he was protecting his ward.

He was the only one in this room who believed Daphne.

“Is there definitive proof she stole the ring?”

“The ring was found in Student Brandley’s bag!”

“Someone could have stolen the ring and deliberately placed it in Student Brandley’s bag. To frame her intentionally.”

“Th-that’s…!”

No one could argue against Astaire’s logical point.

“Suspecting an innocent person without solid evidence.”

Everyone shrank at his ice-cold voice.

“Is this how the Imperial Academy operates? Convening a disciplinary committee without proper evidence and putting an innocent student on trial.”

“…”

“What a waste of time over nothing.”

Having responded that way, Astaire then looked at Daphne and continued.

“Daphne, pack your things.”

“…Pardon?”

“I see no reason to entrust my ward to a school like this.”

He said, looking around the room once. Everyone’s faces turned ashen.

The school official in particular dispatched from the palace looked pale. They clearly never dreamed Duke Seyfried would react this way.

“Y-Your Grace…! Please reconsider just once.”

“We’ll form a proper investigation team and look into it thoroughly!”

“You should have investigated properly before convening a committee like this to stone a student.”

Everyone tried to stop Astaire from withdrawing his ward, but he was immovable.

Daphne hurried back to the dormitory.

Her hands wouldn’t move to pack, but she was in a position where she had to do as her sponsor ordered.

She couldn’t remember how she’d removed everything from her dorm room and packed her bags.

“Daphne.”

Then someone stood at the doorway.

Looking up, it was a boy she usually only exchanged greetings with.

His name was Jayden, wasn’t it?

She couldn’t even remember his surname. Actually, that boy was also from an insignificant family like her and was subtly looked down on by the other children.

In fact, Daphne had known all along why she’d been framed.

It was probably because of that boy.

When the bullying toward that boy intensified—putting trash in his bag and such—she’d said just once “don’t do that,” which must have rubbed the clique the wrong way.

The clique of wealthy kids must have conspired to put Lady Solitaire’s ring in her bag.

Of course, this was all circumstantial.

That’s why Daphne hadn’t spoken carelessly. More than anything, she’d have to expose the shameful truth that the boy was being ostracized by high noble students.

She didn’t want to make an innocent boy uncomfortable just to prove her innocence.

Making the bullying public wouldn’t help anyway—the perpetrators were children of prominent noble families. All that would come back was more serious bullying and ostracism.

“So you’re leaving after all?”

“…Yeah.”

They actually weren’t close.

They’d never properly talked. This would probably be the first and last conversation they had beyond greetings.

“Sorry. It’s because of me.”

Daphne stared at the boy.

Thick horn-rimmed glasses. Hair black as the night sky.

…Wait, was that dyed hair?

Looking at the boy more closely, she could see silver hair growing out at the roots.

Why would he dye his hair black?

She was thinking that when Astaire called for her from behind.

“What’s taking so long?”

“…I apologize.”

Step, step—at the sound of Astaire walking in, Daphne turned away from the boy. She deliberately ignored the piercing gaze she felt from behind.

Suddenly, she thought:

Why should she leave when she’d done nothing wrong?

The bullies were the bad people, not the one being bullied.

So she said it.

“Your Grace.”

“What?”

“…I want to keep attending the Academy.”

Astaire quietly looked into her blue eyes.

Without saying anything, just watching.

She was grateful for his silence.

“…Alright, do as you wish.”

For the first time, he placed his hand on Daphne’s shoulder and spoke.

Daphne looked up at him with wide, surprised eyes.

Astaire was silently conveying to her with unwavering eyes:

Even if everyone in the world didn’t believe her, he alone would.

Daphne blinked slowly.

This time she met Duke Seyfried’s gaze with unwavering eyes.

Astaire had never looked so handsome as he did then.

A man with brilliant sunlight at his back—a man who willingly stepped forward to erase the shadow cast behind her.

When everyone in the world refused to believe her, that man alone had faith in her. How could she not love him?

It probably started then. Her unrequited love for Astaire.

She gave her all to the one who believed in her. And someday, she wanted to tell him: Thank you for believing in me back then. For being the first to consider my usefulness, my existence, valuable.

Even if he didn’t love her, back then it was okay. Because he believed in her. His trust—that alone was enough.

Daphne knew well that wanting love beyond trust was greedy. Since he believed in her, she would believe in him too. She believed that he wouldn’t abandon her.

* * *

Swoosh!

The sound of the curtain closing couldn’t have been more chilling.

“Your Grace, please let go of my hand!”

Only after they were alone behind the curtain did Astaire release the hand that had bound Daphne.

“Please look at me.”

Daphne said weakly in a voice that had given up.

Her hand throbbed with pain from being held by him, making her frown.

Astaire just watched silently as she rubbed her reddened hand with her other hand.

Then.

“I need to verify whether anything really happened with the Second Prince.”

Daphne asked in a trembling voice.

“How… will you verify it?”

In the room shrouded in deep darkness, the curtain fluttered in the night breeze, casting deep shadows on Astaire’s face.

So she couldn’t properly see the man’s eyes right now.

It was hard to grasp what he was thinking.

Daphne was anxious. She clutched her trembling hands and asked again.

“How—”

“Well, why are you asking me that?”

Astaire asked back in a voice chillingly enough to make her shudder.

Her words caught in her throat.

Actually, it wasn’t that she didn’t know the answer at all.

“You already know.”

“…No, I don’t.”

“Daphne.”

Astaire called her in a low voice like thick clouds had gathered.

It was an incredibly gentle voice, but that made it all the more chilling.

Slowly, Astaire’s fingertips lightly lifted Daphne’s chin.

Against her will, she now had to look straight at Astaire.

Despite how burdensome it was to meet his eyes right now.

The man’s thumb pressed down on her plump lower lip like a stamp.

“Open.”

Slowly, her jaw dropped naturally and her lips parted. Cool night air filled her open mouth.

Just as her mouth and throat grew cold, another finger intruded through her parted lips.

“Mmph…”

The man pressed down on her tongue that moved on its own, blocking its movement with his finger.

“Don’t… don’t do this.”

Daphne barely managed to say in a trembling voice. Her pronunciation came out slurred since she couldn’t move her tongue or lips.

She felt the texture of the man’s soft leather glove on her tongue.

She could also tell the man’s expensive leather glove was getting wet from her saliva. Daphne tried to close her mouth. But she couldn’t due to some unknown force.

“Did the Second Prince kiss you?”

“N-no!”

Of course not. Daphne felt like crying from the injustice.